Cartoon, The Great Balloon

Cartoon, The Great Balloon, by James Gillray. A satirical comment on the subject of Lord Grenville's installation as Chancellor of Oxford University. The balloon is depicted as a fat man with hot air (labelled Promises) escaping from behind. The installation (3 July 1810) followed a divisive election in which Lord Eldon opposed Lord Grenville on political and religious grounds. Opponents like Gillray saw Grenville's installation as a triumph for Catholic Emancipation. Faces in the crowd include political figures: Buckingham, Stafford, M.A. Taylor, Erskine, Tierney, Holland, Grey, Sidmouth, Cholmondeley, Whitbread, Watkin Williams-Wynn, Fingall and Sheridan

Picture No

10956207

Media ID

48224202

Size

4349px x 5792px (5.9MB)

Credit

Source

Cartoon in The Works of James Gillray, the Caricaturist; with the History of His Life and Times, edited by Thomas Wright, 1873

Date

1810